Method and equipment for accessing a telecommunication network

ABSTRACT

A method for accessing a network in a telecommunication system which comprises at least one terminal and a plurality of networks. Information sets describing settings needed to access networks and their resources are stored in the terminal. The terminal scans for information about available networks. Available information sets are determined by comparing the information about available networks to the stored information sets. At least one network is accessed based on the settings defined in the available information sets.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to a method and equipment foraccessing a network in a telecommunication system.

[0002] The portion of mobile workforce with portable computers isgrowing all the time. These mobile users need to access their computernetworks from multiple locations. Besides ordinary local area networks,wireless local area networks (WLANs) have entered the markets enablingwireless access to computer networks. WLANs provide the ease of use asno cables are needed. Typically WLANs use radio frequency technologies;however, it is also possible to use e.g. infra-red connections. Ascellular telecommunication systems, WLANs provide wireless connectivityusing cells, called microcells. WLAN access is provided with WLANadapters, which are implemented as PC cards in portable computers, ISAor PCI cards in desktop computers or integrated within hand-heldcomputers.

[0003] There are many system settings involved when a terminal isaccessing a wired or a wireless network. Typically needed settings are:connection method, dial-in settings, IP (Internet Protocol) settings andapplication settings. The connection method specifies the connectiontype, e.g. a direct network connection or a modem connection. Dial-insettings specify at least the access telephone number and dialingprefix, IP settings comprise the needed parameters for accessing IPnetworks, and application settings set the parameters required bypopular applications. There may also be settings identifying networkresources such as printers, shared folders, and mapped network drives tobe used from a particular location. Typically the settings need to bechanged manually every time when the used network changes.

[0004] Besides ordinary settings needed for accessing and using wiredLANs, there are a number of WLAN specific settings that are different invarious WLAN networks. WLAN users need to change network settingsmanually every time they want to access a different network. Many usersare not familiar with different network settings and they may need tocontact IT (Information Technology) support persons for help. This addsexpenses and takes time.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0005] The object of the invention is to facilitate the access totelecommunication networks for mobile users. The object of the inventionis achieved with a method and a terminal which are characterized by whatis disclosed in the independent claims. The preferred embodiments of theinvention are set forth in the dependent claims.

[0006] The invention is based on storing information sets describingsettings needed to access networks and their resources. The terminalperforms scanning in order to find out information about the availablenetworks. Scanning means any kind of activity to find out availablenetworks in the area of the terminal. The available information sets maythen be determined by comparing the information about the availablenetworks to the stored information sets. As the available informationsets are determined, at least one network may be accessed based on thesettings described in the available information sets.

[0007] One advantage of the invention is that users do not need to knowwhat settings are needed and how to change the settings when connectingto a network. The IT staff may collect needed settings under informationsets and store settings for different networks beforehand. This savestime and expenses as less user intervention is needed when accessing anetwork.

[0008] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the network names arestored in the information sets. Network names may be any kind ofidentities that can be used to separate networks. In this embodiment theterminal performs the scanning by sending network identity requests andsearching for network identity responses. The terminal then determinesthe available information sets by comparing the stored network names tothe scanned information identifying the network names of the availablenetworks. This preferred embodiment has the further advantage that theterminal can reliably determine the available networks and informationsets, typically also the existing network names and identity requestsmay be used.

[0009] In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the informationsets are stored separately for each network on a smart card. Although inthis embodiment the settings stored are network-specific, there may alsobe settings related to other networks. Network-specific means heremainly that the settings related to typically first accessed networks,for instance a wireless local area network, are in separate informationsets. The further advantages of this embodiment are that the usage ofsettings can be controlled by smart card access control methods and theinformation sets may be easily used in different mobile terminals.

[0010] Yet in one embodiment of the invention the user is notified aboutthe available information sets. The user is also provided with theopportunity to select one of the available information sets or approvethe available information set. At least one network is then accessedbased on the settings defined in the information set the user hasaccepted. The further advantage of this embodiment is that the user hasthe chance of controlling the information set selection.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] In the following, the invention will be described in furtherdetail by means of preferred embodiments and with reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which

[0012]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a wireless local area networkbased on the IEEE 802.11 standard;

[0013]FIG. 2 is a table illustrating the settings described ininformation sets;

[0014]FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a smart card;

[0015]FIG. 4 is a signalling diagram illustrating the usage ofinformation sets;

[0016]FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a mobile station accordingto a preferred embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0017] In a preferred embodiment the telecommunications network isassumed to be a wireless local area network based on the IEEE (Instituteof Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.11 standard withoutlimiting the invention to that kind of particular network. The inventioncan be used in any kind of telecommunications network where the userneeds to change various settings when accessing different networks andnetwork resources.

[0018] In FIG. 1 an example of a WLAN system based on the IEEE 802.11 isshown. A mobile terminal MS comprises terminal equipment TE, typically aportable computer, a WLAN adapter MT and according to a preferredembodiment of the invention also a smart card SC. A WLAN network NW1,NW2 comprises WLAN access points AP1, AP2, AP3 and AP4 providing theaccess for the MS to the wired network.

[0019] The 802.11 standard defines both the physical and medium accesscontrol protocols for communication over the air interface. The physicallayer specification of the IEEE 802.11 encompasses three transmissionoptions: one infrared option, direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS)option, and frequency hopped spread spectrum (FHSS) option. Both spreadspectrum techniques are used in the 2.4 GHz band because of wideavailability in many countries. The IEEE 802.11 standard supports theDSSS for use with BPSK modulation at a 1 Mbps data rate, or QPSKmodulation at a 2 Mbps data rate. The FHSS is supported under 802.11with GFSK modulation and two hopping patterns with data rates of 1 Mbpsand 2 Mbps. Also higher bit rates are expected in the near future.

[0020] The fundamental access method of the IEEE 802.11 MAC (MediumAccess Control) is known as carrier sense multiple access with collisionavoidance (CSMA/CA). The CSMA/CA works by a “listen before talk scheme”.This means that a mobile terminal MS wishing to transmit must firstsense the radio channel based on the received signal strength todetermine if another terminal is transmitting. If the medium is notbusy, the transmission may proceed. The CSMA/CA scheme implements aminimum time gap between frames from a given user. Once a frame has beensent from a given transmitting terminal MS, that terminal MS must waituntil the time gap is up before trying to retransmit. Once the time haspassed, the terminal MS selects a random amount of time (called abackoff interval) to wait before “listening” again to verify a clearchannel on which to transmit. If the channel is still busy, thefollowing backoff interval is selected that is shorter than the firstbackoff interval. This process is repeated until the waiting timeapproaches zero and the terminal MS is allowed to transmit. It ispossible to use acknowledged data transfer, i.e. after a data frame isreceived, an acknowledgement frame is sent back verifying a successfuldata transmission.

[0021] WLAN mobile terminals MS may form an ad-hoc network simply byestablishing a connection to another terminal. An ad-hoc network is agrouping of mobile stations for the purposes of internet-workedcommunications without the need of wired network infrastructure. Anad-hoc network forms a basic service set (BSS). Infrastructure networksare established to provide mobile terminals MS with specific servicesand range extension. Infrastructure networks are established by creatingconnections between access points AP1-4 and terminals MS. Access pointsAP1-4 provide network connectivity to MS, thus forming an extendedservice set (ESS). At a minimum, access points AP1-4 control theallocation of transmit times, receive, buffer, and transmit data betweenthe mobile terminal MS and the wired parts of the network NW1, NW2. Alogical WLAN network NW1, NW2 may comprise one or more sub-networks SN1,SN2 and SN3. The sub-networks comprise a plurality of access pointsAP1-4. For instance, NW1 comprises two sub-networks SN1 and SN2, thesub-network SN1 comprises two access points AP1 and AP2 and the SN2comprises access point AP3. A logical WLAN network NW1, NW2 may alsoprovide gateway access to other networks ON, such as the Internet, via adevice called portal PT1, PT2. The portal PT1, PT2 is a logical entitythat specifies the integration point where the IEEE802.11 specificnetwork NW1, NW2 integrates with the non-IEEE802.11 network ON.Typically the WLAN network NW1, NW2 also comprises other servers, suchas a DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) server which allocatesIP addresses in the network NW1.

[0022] Security provisions are addressed in the standard as an optionalfeature. The data security is accomplished by an encryption techniqueknown as the Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP). WEP is based on protectingthe transmitted data over the radio interface using an encryption keyand an RC4 encryption algorithm. The IEEE 802.11 standard recommends 40bit encryption keys but it also allows other key lengths. WEP, whenenabled, only protects the data packet information and does not protectthe physical layer header so that other mobile terminals in the networkcan listen to the control data needed to manage the network. However,the other mobile terminals cannot decrypt the data portions of thepacket.

[0023] Individual microcells of access points AP1-4 overlap to allowcontinuous communication with wired parts of network NW1, NW2. Themobile terminal MS may then connect to an access point with bettersignal strength as it moves to another geographic area. For more detailson the IEEE802.11 WLANs, reference is made to IEEE802.11 standards suchas “Draft International Standard ISO/IEC 8802-11 IEEE 802.11/D10,January 1999, Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) andPhysical Layer (PHY) Specifications”.

[0024] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, thesettings needed to access networks and different network resources arecollected together and stored as information sets in the mobile terminalMS. Information sets advantageously comprise network names identifyingnetworks belonging to the information sets. The information sets areadvantageously determined separately for each network and they may beconsidered and called as profiles. Information sets may comprisebasically any kind of settings needed to access the WLAN network NW1,NW2 in question and they may advantageously also comprise non-WLANspecific settings as illustrated in FIG. 2. Besides the settings neededto access networks, the information sets may also comprise settingsneeded to access network resources enabling different services by thenetwork. The terminal MS basically always uses some network resourceswhen it accesses a network NW1, NW2, for instance the transmissioncapability of the access point AP1 is used to transfer data to theportal PT1. Information sets are preferably determined for logicallyseparate networks. For instance, the NW1 and NW2 advantageously havetheir own information sets.

[0025] The operation mode setting defines whether ad-hoc orinfrastructure modes may be used. There are advantageously differentinformation sets for ad-hoc and infrastructure communications, that is,an information set with ad-hoc mentioned in operation mode setting willbe used when connecting another terminal. The network name settingdefines the network names that belong to the information set. As thelogical WLAN networks NW1, NW2 may be segmented into multiplesub-networks SN1-3, all sub-networks SN1-3 preferably have their ownnetwork names. An information set may thus comprise more than onewireless network name. If the used operation mode is infrastructure, theused network name is called ESSID (Extended Service Set Identifier) andif the used operation mode is ad-hoc, the network name is called BSSID(Basic Service Set Identifier).

[0026] A network identifier may be stored in the network name setting tocover more than one network name. A network identifier advantageouslycontains wildcard characters, such as ‘?’ and ‘*’, and by using wildcardcharacters it is possible to specify a group of network names. For thisto work, every sub-network belonging to the same logical network shouldhave a similar (not the same) name; for instance, the SN1 could have thenetwork name NW1LAN1 and the SN2 could have the network name NW1 LAN2.The network name setting of the information set of the NW1 may then beNW1WLAN*.

[0027] The channel settings define whether the operating radio channelis selected automatically or manually. The radio channel may be selectedfrom a set specific to the country where the terminal MS is used. Forinstance, in most European countries channels 1-13 may be used, whereasin the US and Canada channels 1-11 may be used. The first three settingsmarked with ‘!’ are essential and should be stored within eachinformation set. The data rate setting may comprise information aboutthe possible data rates, e.g. the network NW1, NW2 may provide 2 Mbpsdata rate. Thus the terminal MS may use the data rate setting to selectthe network with the highest data rate. Security settings related to WEPpreferably comprise key length, key mode, selected default key and keysor information on the keys used for authentication and/or encryption. Itis suggested that the keys should not be part of the information set;they can be stored elsewhere but the information set references them.Other WLAN specific settings may comprise radio-related parameters orany other settings that may be needed. Other settings may be forinstance different settings mentioned in the IEEE 802.11 standard, suchas the fragmentation threshold or the listening interval.

[0028] Non-WLAN specific settings are not mandatory, but it is suggestedthat they be included especially in information sets for infrastructurecommunications (operation mode is infrastructure). Typically the mostimportant settings are DHCP settings, TCP/IP (Transport ControlProtocol/Internet Protocol) settings and domain logon and work-groupsettings. DHCP settings define whether DHCP is used or not. TCP/IPsettings comprise information about the used IP addresses, gateways, DNS(Domain Name System) servers and WINS (Windows Internet Naming Service)servers. Proxy settings specify the correct WWW (World Wide Web) browsersettings. Domain logon and work-group settings may be needed to enableaccess to specific network services such as shared folders, emailserver, network printers, mapped network drives and Intranet pages. Alsoother kind of non-WLAN settings may be stored in the information sets.

[0029] Some settings may be different for different sub-networks withina single information set. In this case an information set advantageouslycomprises the network names of the sub-networks belonging to theinformation set and the information set-specific settings are storedseparately for every sub-network. For instance, the authentication orencryption keys may be different for different sub-networks. When usingthe information in information sets, the MS may then choose a correctsetting based on the network name that is used.

[0030] The information sets may be stored in files and they may bedistributed to users basically through any media. For instance, it ispossible to download information sets from a WWW page or send theinformation sets by email. According to a preferred embodiment of theinvention, the mobile terminal MS also comprises a smart card SC wherethe information sets are stored. The smart card is preferably insertedin the MT, but it is also possible to use the SC with a card reader ofthe TE.

[0031]FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a smart card SC. The smartcard SC is typically a credit-card sized plastic card comprising amicroprocessor, Also smaller smart cards may be used, such as theplug-in smart cards used in the GSM (Global System for Mobilecommunication) system for storing the SIM (Subscriber Identity Module).The surface of the smart card SC comprises electric contacts that areused to power up the SC and to transfer control and data signals betweenthe data bus DATA I/O and a card reader of a terminal, such as the MT.Thus data is transmitted between the smart card SC and the other partsof the terminal MS through the DATA I/O.

[0032] A smart card controller CNTRL is arranged to control thefunctionality of the SC using the smart card memory SCMEM. TypicallyCNTRL functions based on a program code stored in a read-only memoryROM. Storage memory EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-OnlyMemory) may be used to store information that stays in the memory untilit is re-stored. Data related to information sets is advantageouslystored in information set specific directories of the storage memoryEEPROM. If the security keys are not part of the information sets, thekeys are advantageously also stored on the smart card memory SCMEM. Therandom access memory RAM may be used for temporary data storage. Thesmart card SC also comprises a security logic SEC that takes care ofsecurity features of the SC, such as the check for personal identitynumber (PIN). In order to allow the usage of information sets stored inthe smart card SC, at least the PIN check should be used. It is alsopossible to use other more sophisticated access control methods such asthe check for finger prints. The terminal MS comprises means for usingthe smart card SC, especially means for reading the electric contact andwriting to the storage memory EEPROM of the smart card SC.

[0033] The IT staff may prepare needed the information sets for theusers by storing the necessary settings for accessing WLAN and non-WLANnetworks on the smart card SC. The smart card SC is a very convenientand easy way of using the information sets in different terminals MS andlocations. A secure connection for a new user to the company networksmay be easily and quickly arranged by giving him the smart card SCcomprising the necessary information sets. The information sets (forinstance of NW1 and NW2) can be shown to the user by the user interface(UI) of the terminal MS.

[0034]FIG. 4 illustrates the access to a network utilizing the storedinformation sets. As a user of the MS wishes to originate a connectionto a locally available network, the WLAN functionality is activated. Inorder to find out the information sets and networks that may be used inthe current location area of the terminal MS, the MS performs a scanningof available networks. Scanning for access points AP1-4 as such is abasic functionality defined in the IEEE 802.11 standard, where the MSchecks radio channels one-by-one by sending network identity requests(Probe requests) and searching for network identity responses (Proberesponses). The MS sends Probe requests 401, 402, 403 to local accesspoints, for instance to AP1, AP2 and AP3, and waits for Probe responses.For instance, the access points AP1 and AP3 receive the Probe requests401, 403 and send back Probe responses comprising information of theaccess point 404, 405. Preferably the Probe responses 404, 405 comprisenetwork names of the sub-networks SN1-3 the access points AP1-4 belongto.

[0035] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the MS usesthe scanned information of the networks to determine which informationsets may be used 406. For instance, as the MS receives Probe responses404, 405 from the AP1 and AP3, it compares 406 the network names in theProbe responses 404, 405 to the network names in the stored informationsets and finds out that sub-networks SN1 and SN2 are available. As thegroup of network names is advantageously specified (e.g. NW1LAN*), thenetwork names (NW1LAN1, NW1LAN2) belonging to the same information setcan be easily found. Further, the information set of the SN1 is thenfully available, as the network names of the SN1 (NW1LAN1) and SN2(NW1LAN2) are found. If there are more than one access point (AP1, AP2)in a single sub-network (SN1), the MS may receive the same network namemany times in separate Probe responses. Thus the terminal MS canreliably determine the available networks and information sets,typically also the existing network names and identity requests may beused.

[0036] As the terminal MS is aware of the available information sets, itpreferably informs 407 the user of the MS about the availableinformation sets. If there are more than one information set available,the user may be provided with the chance of selecting the informationset to be used. Thus the user has the possibility to control theinformation set selection. The information set that is available andapproved by the user will then be used and at least the WLAN networkNW1, NW2 is accessed 408 using the settings stored within the selectedinformation set. However, fully automatic information set selection canalso be used, that is, one of the available information sets is selectedwithout any user intervention and the settings of the selectedinformation set are used to access a network. The information sets maybe prioritized to enable the fully automatic selection.

[0037] The wireless connection to the WLAN network NW1, NW2 may beestablished using the WLAN specific settings of the selected informationset and the connection to other networks or servers may be establishedusing the non-WLAN-specific settings. The most important WLAN specificsettings needed by the WLAN functionality of the terminal MS wereillustrated in FIG. 2. The WLAN specific settings are related forestablishing the wireless connection, that is, for accessing an accesspoint AP1-4 and its resources. The non-WLAN specific settings are mainlyused by the operation system of the MS for providing support for otherapplications of the terminal. The non-WLAN specific settings are oftenused to access different network resources, for instance the DHCP serveris accessed in order to obtain an IP address. The information setfunctionality according to a preferred embodiment of the invention takescare that the correct settings related to the WLAN connectionestablishment and to the non-WLAN specific system are selectedautomatically according to the selected information set. For instance,the operation system specific system settings such as the TCP/IPsettings are changed. The usage of the settings illustrated in FIG. 2 toaccess networks and network resources is as such familiar to a manskilled in the art.

[0038] Scanning is preferably carried out each time the user activatesthe WLAN functionality and wishes to access a network. However, it isalso possible to perform the scanning during an on-going connection e.g.periodically. In FIG. 4 the operation mode was the infrastructure modeand scanning of access points was described. The scanning may as well bedone for other terminals (ad-hoc mode) and the terminals at the area maysend their identities. The identities may then be compared to the storedinformation sets and the available information sets for ad-hoc mode maybe used. Thus the accessed network may actually be another terminal andan ad-hoc network may be established.

[0039] In addition to the example illustrated in FIG. 4, the settings ofthe selected information set may also be used to access another networkON, for instance a corporate Intranet email server in another country.Thus it is possible to access a first network by using first settings ofan information set and then use services of a second network usingsecond settings of the information set.

[0040] The preferred embodiment of the invention enables easy access toWLAN network NW1, NW2 and also to other networks ON. When theinformation sets are pre-stored, the user of MS does not have to beaware of any network or system settings needed. In most cases thesettings can also be changed without restarting the system. When theinformation sets are stored on the smart card SC, the IT staff caneasily store and tailor all needed network and system settings for eachuser. The users may then easily change the used terminal just byinserting the smart card SC. The information sets may comprise allneeded WLAN specific and non-WLAN specific settings e.g. to access acompany database or an email server from the WLAN of a branch officelocated in another country. As the available networks and informationsets can be detected automatically, the user does not have to select thecorrect information set, only if there are multiple information sets(networks) available, the user may select the preferred information set(network).

[0041]FIG. 5 illustrates the functional blocks of a mobile terminal MSaccording to a preferred embodiment of the invention. The terminal MScomprises a transceiver Tx/Rx with antennas to communicate with thenetworks NW1, NW2 and with other terminals, user interface means UI, acontrol unit CPU, memory MEM and a smart card SC. The transceiver Tx/Rxmay be typical IEEE 802.11 compliant transmitting and receivingequipment for transmitting and receiving data over the radio interface.As already described the smart card comprises a memory SCMEM where theinformation sets may be advantageously stored as information sets. Thememory of the terminal MS thus comprises two parts, a memory MEM and asmart card memory SCMEM.

[0042] The user interface means UI generally comprise a keyboard, adisplay, a loudspeaker and a microphone, which are not presented in FIG.6. With the user interface means UI, the control unit CPU may show theavailable information sets to the subscriber (407) and the subscribermay then choose the information set to be used. By using the userinterface means UI, it is advantageously possible to view and change thesettings of stored information sets and give further instructions to thecontrol unit CPU. According to an embodiment, the user may also form newinformation sets or modify already existing information sets by usingthe user interface means UI.

[0043] The control unit CPU controls the inventive functions describedearlier in connection with information sets. The CPU and the memory MEM,SCMEM provide memory means for storing the information setsadvantageously on the smart card memory SCMEM using the smart cardreader of the MS and the smart card controller CNTRL. The CPU isarranged to provide scanning means, i.e. to send Probe requests(401-403) and to receive Probe responses (404, 405) using thetransceiver Tx/Rx. Further, the control unit CPU may be arranged toprovide the determination means for determining available informationsets by comparing names to the stored information sets (406). The accessmeans, i.e. the access to network based on the settings in the selectedinformation set (408), is also arranged by the control unit CPUutilizing the transceiver Tx/Rx. All the inventive functionalities ofthe control unit CPU may be implemented by using the existing processorsand memory MEM, SCMEM of the mobile terminals MS. It should be notedthat the functional blocks of the MS illustrated in FIG. 5 may bedivided between the MT, TE and SC illustrated in FIG. 1.

[0044] It is also possible to use the above described procedures relatedto information sets in multimode WLAN terminals that also comprise othermobile telecommunication functionalities, such as the GSM functionality.According to an embodiment, it is also possible to apply network accessusing information sets in equipment based on other kinds of wirelesslocal area networking techniques, for instance in Bluetooth, HiperLAN(High Performance Radio Local Area Network) or BRAN (Broadband RadioAccess Networks) equipment.

[0045] It is obvious to those skilled in the art that as technologyadvances, the inventive concept can be implemented in many differentways. Therefore the invention and its embodiments are not limited to theabove examples but may vary within the scope and spirit of the appendedclaims.

1. A method for accessing a network in a telecommunication systemcomprising at least one terminal and a plurality of networks,characterized by storing information sets describing settings needed toaccess networks and their resources, scanning for information about theavailable networks by the terminal, determining available informationsets by comparing the information about the available networks to saidstored information sets, and accessing at least one network based on thesettings described in the available information sets.
 2. A methodaccording to claim 1 , characterized by informing a user of the terminalabout the available information sets, letting the user select one of theavailable information sets, and accessing at least one network based onthe settings described in the information set the user has accepted. 3.A method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized inthat said stored information sets are stored separately for each networkon a smart card.
 4. A method according to any one of the precedingclaims, characterized by storing network names of the networks belongingto said stored information sets, performing the scanning by sendingnetwork identity requests and searching for network identity responses,and determining the available information sets by comparing the storednetwork names to the scanned information identifying the network namesof the available networks.
 5. A method according to claim 4 ,characterized by storing network identifiers representing a group ofnetwork names using wildcard characters in said stored information sets,and determining the available information sets by comparing the storednetwork identifiers to the scanned information identifying the networknames of the available networks.
 6. A method according to any one of thepreceding claims, characterized in that the terminal is a mobileterminal and at least one of the networks is a wireless local area(WLAN) network.
 7. A method according to claim 6 , characterized in thatsaid stored information sets comprise also channel settings definingwhether the used radio channel is automatically or manually selectedand/or said stored information sets comprise operation mode settingsdefining whether the used operation mode is an ad-hoc or aninfrastructure mode.
 8. A terminal comprising a transceiver (Tx/Rx) forcommunicating with a telecommunication network (NW1, NW2, ON),characterized in that the terminal further comprises memory means (CPU,MEM, SCMEM) for storing information sets describing settings needed toaccess networks and their resources, scanning means (CPU) for scanningfor information about the available networks, determination means (CPU)for determining available information sets by comparing the informationabout the available networks to said stored information sets, and accessmeans (CPU) for accessing at least one network based on the settingsdescribed in the available information sets.
 9. A terminal according toclaim 8 , characterized in that the terminal comprises user interfacemeans (UI) for informing a user of the terminal about the availableinformation sets and letting the user select one of the availableinformation sets, and the access means (CPU) are arranged to access atleast one network (NW1, NW2) based on the settings described in theinformation set the user has accepted.
 10. A terminal according to claim8 or 9 , characterized in that said stored information sets are storedas network-specific profiles on a smart card (SC) that may be accessedby the terminal.
 11. A terminal according to any one of the claims 8-10,characterized in that the memory means (CPU, MEM, SCMEM) are arranged tostore network names of the networks belonging to said stored informationsets, the scanning means (CPU) are arranged to perform the scanning bysending network identity requests and searching for network identityresponses, and the determination means (CPU) are arranged to determinethe available information sets by comparing the stored network names tothe scanned information identifying the network names of the availablenetworks.
 12. A terminal according to any one of the claims 8-11,characterized in that the terminal is a mobile terminal and comprisesfunctionality to access wireless local area networks.
 13. A terminalaccording to claim 12 , characterized in that said stored informationsets comprise channel settings defining whether the used radio channelis automatically or manually selected and/or said stored informationsets comprise operation mode settings defining whether the usedoperation mode is an ad-hoc or an infrastructure mode, and the terminalis arranged to select the used radio channel based on the channelsettings of the available information sets and/or the terminal isarranged to select an ad-hoc or an infrastructure mode based on theoperation mode settings of the available information sets.